What Do We Do? 

-     The Home-Based Care Program is the main activity of the organization. Referrals from the local STD-Clinic and self-referrals are the main source for introducing new clients. Basic physical care and counseling are provided either at clients’ homes or at the office and confidentiality is of utmost importance. Each caregiver has her own “First Aid Kit”, that the MoHSS refill from time to time. Home-Based Caregivers are provided with survey forms they can complete when a client is in need of help from the Soup Kitchen. Our survey committee considers each application on merit and refers to the office for registration. These services have no time frame, because we cannot envision that the need will be eliminated in the foreseeable future. We also help clients to adhere to their ARV treatment, by checking their medicine and see to it that they get to the clinic in time for their new ARV supplies. 

-          We opened our much needed Soup Kitchen in October 2006 with only 48 clients eating lunch on a Monday and Friday. Currently, we have 120 registered PLWHA we help through counseling and care and we provide 70 of them with lunch on a Monday and Friday and 50 others on a Wednesday. We unfortunately do not have the funding to feed everybody every day, even though it is necessary. Most of these clients are already on ARV’s and through these nutritious meals, we support them to adhere to their treatment. The meals consist of meat, vegetables, rice, macaroni, bread, and a drink of 500 ml and we vary the menu to prevent boredom, thus providing clients with the necessary  vitamins and minerals they need. Only clients that can prove their H.I.V+ status and their affected children, are enrolled into this program. Tendency soaring, a realistic estimate for end of 2009, would be at 250 PLWHA’S and 400 meals a week. 

-    We operate an HIV/AIDS Information/Admin Office that is manned three times a week, from 8h00 to 17h00 by volunteers, to provide information on any aspect of HIV/Aids (within our capabilities) and pamphlets are distributed. Awareness Campaigns take place in co-operation with 5 other organizations in the community. The admin office registers H.I.V+ clients for the soup kitchen, as well as potential trainees and handles all matters regarding volunteers.  

-          We organize regular Training Sessions, using our conference room (equipped by the U.S. Embassy), targeting new volunteers to be trained as Home-Based Caregivers and further training for already active Caregivers. We use two of our own Home-Based Caregivers, trained as trainers by the Catholic Aids Action, to do the latter. We are proud to say we trained 9 new Home-Based Caregivers who graduated in September 2008 and we are planning 5 more training sessions for this year. The first one is planned for the 17^th to the 20^th of March. We’ve done “Disability Training” during  2006 through the MoHSS’s physiotherapist, as well as short training sessions, after we sent our Caregivers to workshops organized by N.A.N.A.S.O. Mrs. de Beer is training the admin staff on a regular basis, to improve the capability of the above  mentioned office. We have a great need for specialized training in monitoring and reporting – the Home-Based Caregivers are very willing, but lack writing and language skills. We had our first training session with SMA (Social Marketing Association) the end of January 2008 and two more during the cause of the year. They do empowerment training for our Caregivers to become counselors and start much needed support groups.  

We started a new initiative during 2008 - organizing two training sessions in collaboration with local farmers for their farm workers. This was a huge success - more than 100 farm workers participated. We are planning at least 3 more sessions like this for 2009. 

-          A Needlework Group has been established to keep clients busy and teach them skills and to generate income for the admin office. This group is active and is already producing articles they sell in the community. These funds (although still very small) proportionally go back to the group to buy supplies, a small incentive to the clients themselves and the rest towards the projects day-to-day expenses. The Lions Club donated a sewing machine and an overlocker towards this project. 

-          The Vegetable Garden is well established and is expected to provide the soup kitchen with fresh produce within the next two weeks. Clients and Home-Based Caregivers are working as a team to keep the present garden going. We have space to expand the garden and are planning on that for the next season. 

-          The Charity Shop is manned by volunteers and is an income- generating activity for the

project. The Charity Shop sells second hand clothes for very reasonable prices to the surrounding community and clients. Secondhand clothes are collected from donors in the community.

 

-          Our very effective Fundraising Committee is in charge of fundraising projects such as gala dinners, street  markets and - collections. We raised a huge N$22 000.00 last October with our first Gala Evening at the Okahandja Country Hotel, in conjunction with Miss Namibia, Marelize Robberts. We are planning to repeat this success during 2009. 

The Okahandja Home-Based Caregivers Organization, thankfully, is run by volunteers (not receiving any allowances at this stage), which makes it so highly effective and what made survival, until now, possible. Our volunteers want to do this work, which is proven by their dedication, despite the fact that they do not receive any salaries.   

What Do We Need? 

We appeal to all potential donors, who are concerned about the rapid spread of HIV/AIDS and its effect on our country, to support us in acquiring funding and /or donations to assist us with the above mentioned activities. 

We desperately need assistance towards the following (in order of urgency):  

Soup kitchen Activities:

We use the following per month to feed the above mentioned clients:

(We do however receive donations in the form of fresh vegetables and meat from time to time, but we cannot depend on these donations – they are sporadic)

Dry Groceries from Mega Save per month        N$ 2 000.00
Fresh vegetables per month                              N$    150.00
100 Brown breads per month @6.95 =              N$    695.00
180kg Meat on bones @ 19.00 /kg =               N$ 3 420.00
2 x Gas bottles per month @ 167.70 =               N$   335.40
                                                                       N$6 600.00 per month
                                                                       Total for this section per year: N$79 204.80

 Information Office Activities:

We need financial contributions towards our day-to-day running of the office, to pay for municipality charges, telephone, stationary etc. Our income generating activities contribute at least N$2000.00 per month towards this expenditure, but our shortfall is at least N$ 1000.00 per month

                                                                        Total for this section per year: N$12 000.00

 

Training Activities:

We need a Chalk Board (for the wall of conference room) , a portable Screen and an Overhead Projector to do proper training.

 

1 x Chalk Board Std 2000mmx1200mm@      N$   848.70 

1 x Tripod Screen 1500mmx1500mm    @     N$1 001.65

1 x Overhead Projector                        @      N$1 800.00

Stationary                                                     N$1 600.00

                                                 Once-off:    N$ 5 250.35  (“Edumeds”)

 

                                                            Total for this section (once off) : N$5 250.35

Needlework Activities:

We need secure packing space and a few essentials:

1 x Steel Cupboard 1800mmx900mmx450mm       @ N$  1200.00 (Waltons)

1 x Cash Box Nr.10                                             @ N$    120.00  (Waltons)

1 x Braun Steam Iron                                           @ N$    299.95  ( Hi-Fi Corporation)

A few essential accessories –

       scissors, thread, pins, needles, chip foam              N$    658.47  (Chelsea Fashions)

                                                  Once-off:                N$   1619.95

 

                                                                              Total for this section (once off) : N$ 1619.95
 

Vegetable Garden Activities:

A few extra tools and the garden can expand:

 

1 x Wheelbarrow                                    @  N$ 268.00

1 x Garden  Rake                                    @  N$   48.86 ( “Outspan Wholesalers”)

10m  80% Shade Cloth @ N$ 46.70p.m. =    N$    467.00  ( “Schwarzkopf”)

20m Garden Hose                                    @  N$ 120.00

                                               Once-off:       N$ 903.86

 

                                                                        Total for this section (once off): N$ 903.86

 

Volunteer allowances: (Optional)

We know that we need to compensate our volunteers, who have, unselfishly, donated their time and effort for the past four years without receiving any allowances. Unfortunately we haven’t been able to give them more than three meals a week and the training they receive from time to time. We feel that they would be able to function much better, if we can manage to give them each N$300.00 per month.

 

12 x Monthly allowance of  N$300.00  = N$ 3600.00 per month

                                                                              Total for this section per year: N$ 43 200.00

 

We know that the above budget seems farfetched for an organization with virtually no income, but we’ve managed so far and we will not give up – even if we have to reduce the clients, in order to continue operating. We there for ask you to consider this proposal favorably within your next budget.